MINNEAPOLIS -- A student loan services company recently notified 16,500 borrowers that files containing personal data were released to a business that wasn't authorized to receive them. Access Group Education Lending said in a letter to those affected that the data breach happened on March 23 when one of its vendors sent out files -- including borrowers' names, driver's license numbers and Social Security numbers -- to another business. The business was not identified, but has been described as a student loan lender. Access Group said in the letter that it learned of the release on March 28 and it was assured that the vendor who received the files deleted them and didn't retain copies. The company did not begin notifying borrowers until three weeks later. In response to questions from The Associated Press, Access Group said in a statement that exposure to personal information was limited and has been terminated. Those who were affected are being offered free credit monitoring … [Read more...] about Student loan company notifies 16,500 borrowers of personal data breach

WITH reports of personal data breaches hitting the headlines with alarming regularity, and the fast-approaching enforcement date for GDPR, businesses and individuals alike should by this stage be very mindful of their rights and obligations under the new legislation. I believe the majority of us are fully aware and in many cases accept that our sensitive personal data is held by a multitude of third parties such as banks, GPs, booking agents and insurance providers. Every time we use an app on our phone, it collects and processes sensitive information about us, from location, interests and jobs, to pictures, music tastes and restaurant preferences. But is this volume and indeed nature of information really necessary to personalise the user's experience and what recourse do we have if our sensitive personal data is hacked or breached?Earlier this month, the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) reported that it was investigating 30 organisations as part of an inquiry into the use … [Read more...] about Clock ticking and penalties mounting for data breaches

PROBLEMS due to maintenance work carried out on TSB's online systems over the weekend have left many customers unable to access their accounts. Here is what happened to the bank and what to do if you have been affected by by the issue. What happened to TSB? TSB had planned to carry out maintenance work on it's online services between 4pm Friday 20 April and 6pm Sunday 22 April. The bank had warned customers that they would not have access to services like online banking, making payments and transferring money online whilst this maintenance work was going on. But, after 6pm on Sunday TSB's online services were still down and many customers are still unable to access their accounts today (Monday April 23). Some customers have had their cards declined and direct debits cancelled, others have claimed that when they opened the TSB app they saw other customer's bank details and even had access to move money from the stranger's accounts. Did TSB have a data breach? TSB has denied that there … [Read more...] about Did TSB suffer a data breach, are my online banking details safe and is the website and app still down?